A Vibrant Seattle Through Transportation Excellence.

Happy Anniversary South Lake Union Streetcar! Tuesday, December 12, marks the tenth anniversary of service for the South Lake Union line of the Seattle Streetcar. In celebration of ten years of service, all rides on City of Seattle streetcars will be free on Tuesday, December 12, 2017. Thank you for riding Seattle streetcars!

Seattle has grown!

Seattle has grown leaps and bounds since the South Lake Union Streetcar launched on December 12, 2007. South Lake Union (SLU) was already showing signs of growth from the early 2000’s. There were 2.2 million square feet of office space pre-2004 with about 21,000 jobs. Now there are 11.6 million square feet of office and life science space with 52,000 jobs! As for housing prior to ’04 there were 1,200 units for sale and rent, in 2017 there are 11,700 units for sale or rent.

As Seattle’s unprecedented growth continues, we’ve added more reliable, more frequent, and faster transit service with the extension of the RapidRide C Line to SLU in March 2016. We’re excited that you can share in celebrating 10 years of Streetcar service by taking a free ride. Look for more similar ride opportunities in the weeks ahead.

Connecting the missing link.

The First Hill Streetcar launched service in January 2016 joining SLU as the City’s second streetcar line. The Center City Connector is the missing link that will join the South Lake Union and First Hill Streetcar lines, creating new north-south connections that will allow for easy rail transit connections throughout the core of downtown. Construction began in fall 2017 and will provide better transit connectivity to Pike Place Market, Seattle Art Museum, Link light rail at Westlake, Pioneer Square, and the stadiums. We look forward to celebrating the completion of the Center City Connector and having more choices in getting around our great city.

SDOT City Traffic Engineer, Dongho Chang, explains bicycle and transit markings that help cyclists, drivers, pedestrians and transit riders navigate our streets. It’s part of our effort to keep everyone safe as they travel in and around the city.

Seattle is recognized as one of the safest cities in the country, but there’s more work to do to reach our Vision Zero goal of ending traffic fatalities and serious injuries by 2030. We continue to improve our transportation network to make our roadways safer for all. Thank you for continuing to look out for one another, whether you’re walking, cycling, or driving.

The Free-floating (Dockless) Bike share pilot is going well and rolling into the third month. There are now three permitted privately-owned free-floating bike share companies permitted to operate in Seattle.

Here are some useful tips for bike share users on where to park free-floating bike share bikes:

Free-floating bike share bikes can be parked in the planting strip area of the sidewalk (as long as they aren’t blocking curb ramps, bus stops, benches) or at an SDOT bicycle rack.

Microsurfacing will soon bring “new” life to roads in several Seattle neighborhoods!

Microsurfacing is a protective seal coat which extends the life of pavement. This is a cost-effective method to renew the road surface and seal minor cracks and other irregularities. Like painting a house, microsurfacing creates a protective layer which preserves the underlying structure and minimizes the need for more expensive repairs in the future.

Starting on August 14, crews working for the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) will carry out the City’s 2017 Microsurfacing Program in several parts of town. The project will improve the surface of streets on the future Rainier and North Seattle Neighborhood Greenways, and in areas of Bitter Lake, Wedgwood and Ravenna-Bryant.

Click on a neighborhood link below for street maps of work areas and dates:

Microsurfacing seals minor cracks with a coating that’s only about one-quarter inch thick. It protects the pavement and extends the life of neighborhood streets. This helps the city avoid larger and more expensive repairs later.

Microsurfacing is considered a cost-effective way to restore a road surface and extend the life of the street by 7 to 10 years. This year’s program is funded through the city’s Real Estate Excise Tax (REET).

People who live or work in the work zones should have received a letter about what to do to prepare for the project, such as moving your vehicles off the street. To learn more about microsurfacing, and to see maps of all the specific streets being resurfaced this summer, please check out www.seattle.gov/transportation/Microsurfacing.htm.

City of Seattle offices are closed on Tuesday, July 4th, in observance of Independence Day. Street parking is free in Seattle for the 4th of July holiday.

Tens of thousands of people will gather around the shores of Lake Union Tuesday night to watch the annual 4th of July fireworks show.

Whether you’re traveling by foot, car, bike, or scooter it’s important to watch out for others when traveling. Here are a few safety tips to ensure that your 4th of July is safe:

Allow Plenty of Time to Reach Your Destination

Plan your trip and be sure to allow enough time to get where you’re going. Speeding will most likely cause trouble on our streets. Remember, thousands of people will be out and about. So please slow down and enjoy the summer scenery!

Plan Ahead if You Plan to Drink

Help keep our streets safe by not driving while under the influence of alcohol, which remains the single biggest contributing factor to traffic fatalities, nor driving while under the influence of marijuana. If your plans include partaking, be sure to make your transportation plans before you have that first adult beverage. Take a cab/car service or a bus, choose a designated driver, or sleep it off at a friend’s house. Just don’t get behind the wheel.

Focus on the Road

Your phone will be notifying you all day long as you coordinate with friends and post your selfies to social media. Whether you’re driving, walking, or biking, we recommend that you focus on the road instead of other things. Remember, people will be absolutely everywhere this weekend. Make sure you look out for others. Vision Zero is our plan to end traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2030.

Stop for Pedestrians

The weather has been great and people will be out and about, everywhere. As drivers, always be watchful, courteous, and remember to stop for pedestrians.

You decide how to spend $2 million of the City’s budget, Ages 11 and up encouraged to vote

Now through June 30, it’s your chance to vote for your favorite park and street improvement projects.

It’s all part of the City of Seattle’s Your Voice, Your Choice: Parks & Streets, a participatory budgeting initiative in which Seattle residents democratically decide how to spend a portion of the City’s budget on small-scale park and street improvements. A total of $285,000 is set aside in each City Council District, and residents can cast their ballots for their top three choices in the district where they live, work, go to school, receive services, or volunteer.

Each council district will have its own ballot with a set of 8-10 projects. The projects were selected from nearly 900 ideas submitted in February by community members across Seattle. The projects, which can be viewed at www.seattle.gov/yvyc, range from improved intersection crossings to better park accessibility.

Community members ages 13 and up can vote online or at in-person polling stations (community members ages 11-12 can vote via paper ballot).Paper ballots are available for pick-up and drop-off at all City of Seattle community centers and libraries.

Ballots will be tallied after June 30, and winning projects will be announced by July 18. The projects that receive the most votes will be funded by the City and implemented in 2018.

City of Seattle offices will be closed in observance of Memorial Day. On-street parking is free in Seattle on Monday, May 29 for the Memorial Day holiday.

Please travel safely and enjoy the holiday weekend as you reflect on those who served our great country.

3d U.S. Infantry (Old Guard) soldiers place flags at Arlington National Cemetery on May 26, 2016. Over 230,000 American flags are placed at each headstone in ANC before Memorial Day each year. (U.S. Army Photo by Rachel Larue)

Monday is a federal holiday in which we honor the those who have died while serving in the United States military. Originally Memorial Day began as an event honoring Union soldiers who had died during the American Civil War. After World War I, it was extended to include all men and women who died in any war or military action. Initially titled Decoration Day, after World War II the day became known as Memorial Day.

Seattle is kicking off Pothole Palooza on Monday, April 17, a campaign to aggressively repair potholes across the city. Beginning today, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is asking community members to report neighborhood potholes so we can map them out as our Pothole Rangers move throughout the city.

During the campaign, SDOT crews will be assigned to specific districts around the city. SDOT Crews will be joined by crews from Seattle Parks and Recreation who will assist with these efforts.

Potholes occur when street pavement cracks and breaks because of water and vehicle traffic. During winter months, water can cause the material under the pavement to erode, freeze and expand, and then thaw and contract causing the pavement to sink down and break. Many streets, particularly in the outer areas of the city, have a very poor underlying structure, or sub base, which reacts poorly to these conditions. This freeze/thaw cycle can cause the pavement to crack so that it deteriorates quickly under the weight of traffic, and then streets can seem to break out in potholes overnight.

Seattle has had an extremely wet and cold 2016-2017 winter season. Residents typically see more potholes in the winter and spring, following periods of cold temperatures and rain or snow. February and March are when we see the highest numbers of potholes. This past February was the wettest we have experienced in thirty years. For more information about potholes, please visit: http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/potholes/.

In observance of Presidents’ Day, City of Seattle offices are closed on Monday February 20th in observance of the federal holiday.

On-street parking is free in Seattle on February 20th, Happy Presidents’ Day!

Presidents’ Day is an American holiday celebrated on the third Monday in February. Originally established in 1885 in recognition of President George Washington, it is still officially called “Washington’s Birthday” by the federal government.

Traditionally celebrated on February 22—Washington’s actual day of birth—the holiday became popularly known as Presidents’ Day after it was moved as part of 1971’s Uniform Monday Holiday Act, an attempt to create more three-day weekends for the nation’s workers. While several states still have individual holidays honoring the birthdays of Washington, Abraham Lincoln and other figures, Presidents’ Day is now popularly viewed as a day to celebrate all U.S. presidents past and present.